Programs
The Rosebud Indian Reservation, which was
established in 1889 and is home to the Rosebud (Sicangu) Sioux Tribe, is
located in Todd County and trust lands in Mellette, Tripp, Lyman and
Gregory Counties in south central South Dakota. The Reservation
has a total area of 922,759 acres (1,442 square miles) and approximately
20,000 people living in twenty communities. The Reservation
encompasses rolling hills, woodlands, river valleys, stock dams, and
lakes and has approximately 318,436 arable acres of land. Surface
water resources, though valuable and widely distributed are undependable
because of scanty and erratic precipitation. The Reservation
widely is located in a rural area of South Dakota with many Tribal
programs competing for limited resources.
In 1997, Rosebud Sioux Tribal environmental staff identified the primary environmental problem as groundwater contamination from hydrocarbons, arsenic, and nitrates that were deteriorating the drinking water quality at two communities on the Reservation. The quality and quantity of water on the entire Reservation has become a major issue affecting humans, livestock, agriculture, and recreation. The problem is attributed to a number of factors including:
- Low annual precipitation (16"-18") annually
- Poorly constructed, low capacity wells
that costly to maintain and often contaminated
- Impracticality of acquiring water from deep bedrock aquifer that is high in salinity and other mineral content
- Increasing hazardous waste contamination
In recent years, issues related to solid and hazardous waste have rated along with with water contamination problems as the major environmental concern facing the Tribe. The Tribe has been struggling with identifying enough funding to:
- Close old dumps
- Establish compliant landfills and waste sorting facilities
- Eliminate illegal dumping
- Purchase adequate equipment
- Training of personnel to appropriate standards
- Educate the community and businesses on proper disposal procedures for solid and hazardous wastes
All of the above contribute to the growing concerns of tribal members and stakeholders and ultimately have the potential to affect drinking water sources, public health, recreational water resources and natures ecosystem. It is the duty of all individuals to contribute and protect these valuable resources for many years to come.